Tokyo - Typhoon Tokage hit western Japan on Wednesday, killing at least 15 people and snarling transport as it lashed the country with heavy rains that set off landslides and forced thousands to evacuate.
Tokage, which means "lizard" in Japanese, is the second typhoon to hit the country in under two weeks and a record 10th this year.
Weather officials said the storm, which came ashore on Shikoku island, 680km west of Tokyo, could rake much of the main island of Honshu and might pass close to the capital.
"I saw waves come up to the second floor and water all over the place. I was astonished," a woman in Kochi in Shikoku said.
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'I saw waves come up to the second floor' Television footage showed huge waves pounding the coastline and muddy water flooding shopping districts.
NHK said 15 people were killed and 12 were missing.
A 24-year-old woman died after she was buried by a landslide.
A newspaper delivery man was found dead in a river after he disappeared during his rounds.
More than 5 000 people throughout Japan evacuated to schools and public halls out of fear of flooding and landslides. At least 40 000 lost power at one point.
"It's a very strong typhoon... we are continuing strict surveillance and have asked local regions to be on guard," top government spokesperson Hiroyuki Hosoda told a news conference.
Business operations were also affected.
The world's second-largest carmaker, Toyota Motors, halted production at 12 of its factories from Wednesday evening due to the typhoon.
It was expected the factories would resume production on Thursday.
The typhoon was expected to pass close to Tokyo either late on Wednesday or early on Thursday. Rainfall in Tokyo up to Wednesday evening was expected to total 200mm.
Storms and floods have killed at least 79 people in Japan this year. - Reuters
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This article was originally published on page 2 of Cape Times on October 21, 2004
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